A '90s country superstar gets emotional about his son's sacrifice as a Marine

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You know Mark Chesnutt’s long string of ’90s hits, including “Going Through the Big D,” “Brother Jukebox,” “I’ll Think of Something” and “Bubba Shot the Jukebox.” What you probably don’t know is this country legend is also a proud military dad.

Recently, Mark posted a photo of his son, Casey, playing guitar with the caption letting his fans know the 20-year-old young man would soon head off to serve in the Marines.

He writes, “He’s going somewhere to defend our freedom. He will do his job for his country. So while people are protesting and running down our country, my son is loading up to go fight for all our rights. Yours and mine. He is going to fight for America. He is not alone.”

We asked Mark about that post, and he told us his son is now in training as a Lance Corporal. Thinking of the sacrifice his boy is making makes it hard for Mark to hear about anyone criticizing the U.S.

Mark tells Rare Country, “He’s sacrificing maybe his life someday, we don’t know. He’s in training right now. He’s being trained to protect our country and to protect every citizen in this country whether you’re a Republican or Democrat or Liberal or Conservative. You can carry all the signs you want and everything. Whether you agree or disagree with the president, it doesn’t matter. We still have a military that’s out there to keep us all safe. If it wasn’t for people like my son, we wouldn’t be sitting here today.”

Mark’s son first wanted to volunteer for the Marines when he was just 12 years old. He volunteered at 17 and is now serving at age 20.

“One of my best friends — both of his sons were Marines,” Mark explains. “They went to Iraq and Afghanistan, and they were in some really bad stuff. It didn’t deter him at all. He wanted to be a part of that. Now, he is. I’m so proud of him right now that if I keep talking about him, I’m going to start crying.”

Mark also points out that his son and the millions of others in our military are volunteers. He wants everyone to keep that in mind in this tense political climate.

Mark adds, “So, if you want to go out and protest and carry a sign and complain about our country and burn our flag and everything, think about the guys that go out there and fight for your freedom to be an idiot.”